Category Archives: Around Ontario

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Back from vacation, I write about how I got home from ONT in unexpected fashion, and then relate an odd story from before vacation, in which a TV news crew entered a restaurant at which I was eating to report on a stolen tip jar. There’s a few short items after that. All the above is in Wednesday’s column.

I attended a council meeting double-header the other night: first Ontario, where they were talking about Chino, and then Chino, where they were talking about, well, Chino. The story is in Sunday’s column.

You were probably on pins and needles, you may have had your bets in in Las Vegas, but the wait is over: Ontario’s historic preservation awards were announced recently. I list them and describe them in Sunday’s column, followed by news about a library card catalog, some cultural notes, a plug for this blog and a vignette. Above, the home at 214 E. 4th St., one of the winners. Clearly the awards are not based on size.

Illustrating once again that there’s a local angle to everything, a longtime Upland man, Cornelius Van Dam, was the structural engineer who oversaw the new version of the Hollywood Sign in 1978. The modest Van Dam, long retired, now lives in a retirement home in Ontario and says he was never a publicity hound. Nevertheless, at his wife’s urging, he talked to me for Wednesday’s column.

Sunday’s column is about a retired air traffic controller at ONT, Bill Wheeler, who tells me about what it was like working at the airport in the ’80s, ’90s and ’00s and recounts a few notable moments. Hope you like it. Above, Wheeler on his last shift in 2010.

My annual film series at the Ontario Library is imminent! The schedule is in Wednesday’s column, as are some Culture Corner and other items. I’m taking a few days off, so this is my last column for a week.

Ontario managed to limit the public relations damage from a plan to cut down dead or diseased trees on Euclid Avenue, unlike Upland. Only one resident spoke at the council meeting last week. I attended and write about the situation in my Sunday column.

Palm Lake Golf Course in Pomona, established in 1960, is closed at least temporarily after the operator couldn’t make enough money to pay his bills. The city hopes to find a new operator. I explain the situation and the history in Wednesday’s column. Above, a dispiriting view of the course from the south.

The blog of CarRentals.com chose the “30 Best Neighborhoods in America” — among them: The Woodlands, Texas; Minnetonka, Minnesota; Beaverton, Oregon; and Salem, Massachusetts — and Ontario was among them. The city is described as being in the Riverside Metro area rather than a suburb of LA. Here’s what the blog says in full, under a photo of the Improv stage:

The Inland Empire of Southern California is loaded with cheeky towns that are perfect for weekend getaways. One such town is Ontario, where the Chaffey Community Museum of Art will invigorate your passion for fine paintings. After talking in hushed tones at the art gallery, enjoy side-splitting laughs at the Improv Comedy Club. Who knows, you might just witness the next Eddie Murphy take the stage.

Perhaps not how many of us would think of Ontario, but it’s always interesting to see ourselves as others see us. Still: “cheeky”?